The Avengers' Crusade
by Green Gallant
Summary: A villain from the future travels back in time to destroy the Avengers. Now one hero must take them into the future and show them that which is to come, if they are to save not only thier own lives but to restore the honor of the hero community.
1. Daken

_Author's Note: Hey this is Green Gallant with my first ever Avengers: Earth's Mightest Heroes fanfic. Growing up I've been a fan of both Marvel and DC animation. Though admittedly I'm more of a DC fan. I've watched this show since its inception and I have to say the new show is kind of addictive. I love it. I've been wanting to do a fic about this series since it first premiered but could never think of an effective plot until now. I have several ideas stored away, which may end up seeing print one of these days. Till now I submit to you my first foray into the fandom. _

**The Avengers' Crusade**

**Chapter 1**

**Daken**

On a hilltop several miles from New York City a young man with a Mohawk stood on a grassy cliff with arms folded as he overlooked the part of New York that'd been devastated in the Avengers' first mission against Graviton. He was a sixteen-year-old man dressed in a sleeveless shirt and pants as the wind blew over him with a stone cold look on his face. The corner of his lip twisted into a smile.

"Soon they will be gone." He said.

The young man stretched out his right arm and a set of claws shot out of his forearm in a tripod formation. And turned his arm towards himself looking at his own bone claws, two on top with one underneath.

"And I can hardly wait." He said as he let out an evil chuckle.

At Avengers Mansion almost 30 miles away within the city, the team went about their daily routines. With the majority of the Avengers above ground in the mansion part of the base, downstairs in the base Tony Stark was on monitor duty as Iron Man sans helmet. In one of the mansion's many hallways strode Steve Rodgers in costume as Captain America with Janet Van Dyne, the Wasp close behind him.

Steve looked over his should and noticed that she'd been following him for some time. The soldier didn't seem to mind at first glance, but at the same time seemed a bit bothered by her following him.

"Is there anything I can help you with miss?" he asked ever the gentleman.

"Nope. Just taking a stroll with you Cap." She smiled back.

"Very well." He said trying to hide his embarrassment while turning his attention back to the forefront. And nearly walked into Black Panther. The onyx-suited teammate ducked around him just barely missing the Captain catching Steve off guard.

"Uh sorry Panther didn't see you there." he apologized.

"That's all right Captain." T'challa told him.

Steve ducked into the den to get away from Janet for a while. It wasn't that he minded his teammate but her flirtatious attitude towards him and the other Avengers was a little unnerving to Steve at times. He just wasn't use to a woman being so open. Or maybe he'd been in the service too long? It was clear he still hadn't gotten use to this era just yet. Having sat down on the couch to relax, he found a book on the coffee table and grabbed it and started reading.

"What troubles thee friend?" someone asked. He peered over the top of his book to see the Asgardian sitting in a chair next to him.

"Oh Thor. Um, nothing is wrong." He said shaking his head.

"Thou art a terrible liar." He mused good-naturedly.

"It's Ms. Janet I'm afraid. I don't know what it is about her." he said looking down at the floor.

"Indeed she is quite spirited." Thor replied.

"That's one way of putting it. Has she been like to anyone else here?" he asked.

"What doth thou mean?" Thor inquired raising an eyebrow.

"I think she may have…an interest in me." Steve replied.

"I see. And hast fair Janet confirmed any of this?" Thor asked.

Before he could answer the alarm sounded grabbing their attention while simultaneously Steve pulled out his Avenger that was activated by Tony.

"Avengers Assemble." Said Iron Man.

A few minutes later the team entered the command center with Tony standing at one of the computers.

"What's wrong?" Cap asked as they rushed over to him.

"Some kid with claws is on a rampage." He said turning to them.

"Do we know who it is?" Steve asked.

"That's just the thing he doesn't show up on any records." Tony told him.

"So we know absolutely nothing about him." Hawkeye stated.

"Exactly." Said Tony.

"If it is not one of the escaped villains, then me thinks it might be a trap." Thor said as Tony looked back at him and contemplated it.

"Or it could just be another baddie wanting to cause trouble." Janet countered earning a look from the Thunder God.

"No offense." She added.

"None taken." He replied. The Hulk scoffed and folded his arms.

"If stupid kid looking for trouble, he found it." Hulk said.

"Well at this point we don't have much of a choice. Let's take care of it." Tony said.

The crew piled into the Quinjet and left Avengers Mansion. A dozen blocks away in midtown Manhattan the young man terrorized unsuspecting New Yorkers with his claws drawn and held his arms out of his sides with a sadistic grin on his face as people ran. The Quinjet appeared overhead moments later as the Avengers leaped from the plane and landed collectively in front of the young man. The villain stopped short but didn't seem surprised to see them, on the contrary he seemed all to eager to meet them as evidenced by his malicious grin. Even as Iron Man pointed his Repulsor Gauntlet at him.

"All right who are you?" the hero asked. The villain's smile broadened revealing his teeth.

"The name's Daken." He answered nonchalant.

"All right then…Daken so then what are you doing here? Aside from scaring people." probed the iron gladiator.

"My mission." He answered revealing his claws and flew at them.

Iron Man fired a Repulsor blast at the teen that dodged it and blocked several more blasts crossing his arms before throwing himself in the air at Iron Man. Cap threw his shield that was deflected in the air by his arm and sent it behind him. Iron Man fired a full powered Unibeam blast from his chest at Daken who flew just over the beam's path and slashed Iron Man's chest and shoulder taking him out. Cap and Hawkeye immediately went on offense and attacked him before he could do anymore damage to Iron Man with Cap tackling his midsection. The blow was strong enough to knock Daken back but somehow recovered and threw the Captain over his shoulder. The Captain recovered with a series of flips, while Hawkeye and Wasp took aim and fired at him. Daken slashed through Hawkeye's arrows while Wasp's stings hit their mark momentarily stunning him.

The villain raged and hurled himself at the pair slashing Clint and throwing Wasp back. Ant-Man caught her while Thor went after him with his charged up Mjolnir. Daken vaulted over Thor's back as he smashed the pavement with his hammer and made a B line towards Hulk who did his own street makeover. Daken leaped to the side dodging his massive fists before recovering and going after the beast. The villain cut loose on the Hulk and started slicing and dicing him with claws. The Hulk roared as he cut through his skin with amazing speed to the point where Hulk couldn't keep up with him and yet fought back all the same.

Ant-Man shrunk and snuck up behind Daken growing to regular size and holding his arms in a Full Nelson lock. Unfortunately this backfired when Hulk punched Daken and sent the both of them flying into the street knocking Ant-Man out. Daken groaned and clutched his chest being momentarily phased by the Hulk's punch and was being fired upon by Wasp.

This enraged Daken as he charged at her with claws drawn. Wasp continued firing even as he advanced towards her and threw his right fist at her. Hawkeye jumped infront of her blocking the attack with his bow while Daken rammed his other fist through his stomach. Clint doubled over while Janet looked on in horror. But the archer chuckled to Daken's consternation even as blood fell from his mouth. Clint had chain mail underneath his costume that managed to cushion the blow and held his own against Daken.

"It seems as though I've underestimated you Hawkeye. I _wont_ make that mistake again!" he yelled and started to push through the chain mail with his claws causing more injury to Clint.

Black Panther lunged at Daken and rammed his energy shards into Daken's chest. The villain roared and staggered back pulling out claws simultaneously. Panther flipped over him grabbing him by the shoulders and catapulted him as he landed on his feet. Hawkeye went down on his knee clutching his stomach and groaned while his teammates flew to his side. Daken recovered sliding back on his feet as Cap threw his shield at Daken one last time, Iron Man fired a repulsor blast simultaneously. Daken ducked to the side avoiding the dual attack as Hulk's shadow appeared over him and pounded him into the ground knocking the teen unconscious. His chest heaved and coughed up blood as he lay on his back in the crater and rolled on his side awake but severely weakened. Hulk's eyes widened in shock at the boy's resiliency and looked back at him defiantly.

"This is…*cough, cough* just the beginning…" he said weakly before passing out.

The Avengers looked at each other wondering what this could have meant. And more importantly who this kid was and how he was able to hold his own for so long? On a rooftop overlooking the battlefield stood a young woman with long brown hair in a leather jacket and jeans. The teenager narrowed her eyes at the defeated Daken as the wind blew behind her. The Thunder God looked up and caught sight of the young girl, who saw him and promptly retreated.

"Halt!" Thor yelled and flew towards the roof grabbing his teammates' attention.

"Thor? What is it?" Iron Man asked.

The Asgardian reached the roof a few seconds later and watched the girl take off in a dead sprint across the building before leaping to the next roof.

"Wait!" he yelled taking off after her.

The girl was incredibly fast having reached the other side of the building before leaping to the next one and tumbled across it safely before getting back up. Thor flew after her as fast as he could but was several steps behind the young girl who continued to run. Thor flew over the girl and landed infront of her a moment later catching her by surprise, and reacted by doing a roundhouse kick a long metal blade shot out of her foot towards his head.

The Thunder God dodged it at the last moment as her foot whipped through his mane slicing off a few golden locks.

"What manner of sorcery is this?" he questioned as she came out of the roundhouse and stared him in the face before taking off once more.

"Wait!" he yelled once more. The girl raced towards the edge and jumped to the street below

"No!" he yelled and flew towards the edge. And saw that the girl had already touched down and ran up the street to his amazement.

"Thor!" Iron Man yelled landing behind the Asgardian.

"You want to tell me what that was about?" he asked folding his arms.

The Asgardian watched as she disappeared into the city.

"I dont know." he answered.

Around the corner the young girl hid behind a building. Once she was sure she had lost him she held a hand up to her ear and spoke.

"It's me, they know I'm here." she stated.

"Yes sir, Hawkeye is still alive...for now." she added.

"Daken has been defeated by the Avengers known as Iron Man, Captain America and the Hulk. What shall I do with him?" she asked.

"Understood...I will. X-23 out." she said.

_Author's Note: All right like I said earlier, I've been meaning to do a fic like this for the longest time. Doing either a future fic, or one set in WWII or even one that features the return of a certain character from Cap's past. Anyway to be completely honest, this story the premise of which is in fact an homage to Rider Paladin's Avengers: Code of Hero story which is one of my personal favorites. And for some reason the idea of using newer Marvel characters in the future appeals to me. So I hope you guys like this, and let me know what you think. _

_Please review, _

_The Green Gallant. _

_Happy New Year. _


	2. When The World Is Broken

_Author's Note: All right I'm back with another chapter. It took me a while but I've finally figured something out. Hope you guys like it. _

**The Avengers Crusade**

**Chapter 2**

**When The World Is Broken**

Salem Center, New York. At the site of the former Xavier Institute for Higher Learning, a man in a trench coat walked through the ruins of the former school. Piles of shattered mortar and splintered wood lay about the grounds as the man surveyed the damage. There wasn't much left of the place, the man in the visor sighed as the wind blew over him. And crouched down and pushed back debris revealing a destroyed slab of rock with the letters _F.O.H._ spray painted across it in red.

"Back again huh?" a young woman said.

"I still cant believe its gone." He said without looking at her. A woman dressed in a green jumpsuit with a brown bombardier jacket crouched down beside him.

"I know surg, but you have to let it go. The Professor wouldn't want us dwelling on this. The mansion's gone, but we're still here." She offered as the man squeezed his fists.

"And so are the X-Men…" he muttered.

"C'mon this isn't helping." She said helping him up.

"We'll find a way to keep fighting, this isn't the end." Rogue told him.

"No…as much as I hate to say it Rogue, the X-Men are done. All the others have gone their separate ways. Why haven't you?" he asked.

"Because someone has to be here in case they decide to come back. Maybe its time you move on Scott, you have your whole life ahead of you. And there are other teams besides the X-Men." She told him.

"What like that slime Osborn's team of…" he scoffed.

"Not even close surg. I'm talking about joining the resistance, the real Avengers." She told him.

"They're still around?" he asked.

"As far as I know. That's where Logan is." She answered.

"Figures." He muttered.

"Why don't you join them? You'll be doing more good there than you will here. Its your choice Scott." She said with a smile.

For the first time for as long as he could remember a smile appeared on his face.

"Your right thanks. But what about you?" he asked.

"I'll join up when I'm good and ready." She replied. Cyclops nodded and patted her shoulder and returned the gesture with a hug.

"You take care now." she told him.

"You too." He said as he got on his motorcycle and started it up before taking off.

In New York City, Norman Osborn was found in his office doing paperwork when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in." he muttered while working.

The door opened as a woman walked in and approached him.

"What is it?" he asked never looking up. A woman with dark hair and glasses spoke up.

"Sir we've just received word on Daken." She told him.

"And?" he asked with an impatient growl.

"He's been defeated sir." She answered calmly. Osborn looked at her as a look of anger set in.

"He what?" he growled.

"The Avengers took him out, but according to our source he put up a tremendous fight against them." the woman said maintaining her calm demeanor despite Osborn's.

"Did he at least get…"

"Our source says that he lives." She answered.

Norman growled and overturned his desk infront of the woman startling her for only a minute as he got up and approached her.

"Get him back here at once." He ordered.

"Of course sir." She replied stoic as ever.

Norman stormed out of his office and down the hallway as his employees were walking past him and looked back as he sulked. His assistant Victoria Hand remained in the room with the overturned office desk before her. A man rushed in a moment later checking on her.

"Everything all right?" he asked.

"Everything's fine. Could you have someone clean this up?" she requested.

"Of course. You know I worry about you sometimes. With that man you never know what to expect." The blonde haired man replied.

"It comes with the job." She replied casually.

Down the hall Norman fumed before a window overlooking the city.

"So Hawkeye lives huh? That's going to throw a wrench into things." he muttered.

"Is everything all right sir?" Victoria asked approaching him from behind.

"Just a minor set back. Have Daken returned to us as soon as possible." He said in a calmer voice.

"Already on it." she told him.

This was the future; the heroes of old have gone away. They have failed, an alien invasion overwhelmed them from within and it was their own faults that led to their failure. A new era has begun, one where evil has supplanted good hiding in plain sight. Even now as a group of children visit a museum they are unaware of the changes that have taken place. The middle school kids were ushered inside to see the exhibits, as Norman Osborn made his way back to his office.

As they entered the building they were brought to a massive statue of Captain America that stood in the center as the lead-in exhibit. The statue showed him in a victorious pose 20 ft high wielding his iconic shield high above his head. The children were told the history of Cap while Norman returned to his chair and settled in. As they learned of the noble Captain's exploits throughout WWII and into more recent times, Norman continued with his paperwork as before. The children looked up in wonder at the imposing statue of the Captain whose stone cold glance cut towards the museum's front entrance. Norman filed his paperwork after signing them and stamped them with his seal.

The children were then ushered towards a smaller statue of Thor the Thunder God. At the base of his statue was his helmet and legendary hammer Mjolnir. The curator told the tale of how Thor faced off against Graviton in the Avengers' first battle, and the devastating power he wielded. How no mere mortal could lift Mjolnir and that its name meant 'The Crusher'. Only one person was able to lift it other than Thor, Captain America. So powerful was the Mjolnir that it could level mountains. Because of its great power only the most virtuous could wield it responsibly.

They were then brought to the next exhibit one that portrayed Ant-Man in his regular and giant form. The smaller one showing him with his helmet while his giant self was only five or six feet taller. They then moved onto the Wasp, then Hawkeye, Black Panther and finally the Hulk. The children seemed especially interested in the green goliath as the curator told of his exploits. They'd heard stories of the Hulk from their parents. How he was one of the strongest beings on the planet. And was also the most feared, the children seemed especially fond of the Hulk mainly because they didn't know him in their lifetime which the curator knew added to the mysticism. Though he was feared in the past, the Hulk had been regarded as a hero in recent times…especially now.

The last exhibit was one the children were less than stoked to see, the final member of the Avengers and team leader. Tony Stark, the Iron Man. Their expression changed from that of excitement to disgust as some of them wouldn't even glance upon his armor that now rested in the museum. They knew the story behind him; he was the one that nearly ended the world. Years ago when the Skrulls invaded, Stark Enterprises was the world's premier defense contractor that included its orbiting satellite defense system that was supposed to guard the Earth from invasion. The Skrulls found a way around it, and compromised the world's security. Because he held an exclusive contract on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s orbital defense system, Stark was held accountable for the invasion and discredited infront of the world stage. _That_ was something they remembered.

The group soon departed from the exhibit when it was apparent they weren't interested. Even the curator was bugged about the sudden silence. Only one child lagged behind as he looked back at the Iron Man armor with intent, and looked back across the way to see Captain America's shield sitting at the base of his statue. The small boy was called by his peers and reluctantly caught up with them.

Back in the present, Captain America and his teammate studied the captured Daken who was currently in a recovery chamber on the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier.

"Any idea who he is?" Cap asked.

"We have no records of him." a female agent said scanning her tablet.

"He said his name was Daken." Thor recalled as Wasp bent down and pointed at his right arm.

"His claws are just like Wolverine's." she stated.

"Well not exactly like his, but their are some similarities. The composition is different these are bone, not adamantium. And his claws are laid out in a tripod like position, where as Logan's are all above the knuckle…" Ant-Man said on closer inspection.

"Scans are showing their defiantly bone." Iron Man said examining him through x-ray scanner.

"You think there's a connection?" Hawkeye asked.

"Its possible, it would appear that he maybe a result of experimentation." Ant-Man offered.

"Or a mutant." replied Wasp. The group fell silent as all eyes fell on her. The young woman looked around awkwardly before asking.

"What? There _are_ mutants out there!" defending her remark before noting Ant-Man's silence.

"Your quiet. Your usually geeking out at this sort of thing." She said looking back at him.

"It just doesn't add up. Why would this young man attack citizens and then us unprovoked?" he asked rubbing his chin. Wasp shrugged before answering.

"Dunno, lots of villains do It." she said.

"But there's usually a reason behind it. Be it a bank robbery or a well though out attack. None of us have ever seen this kid, and yet he was able to best most of us in battle. Including the Hulk." He said earning a grunt of his teammate.

"There's more to it than that, I just know it. I just wish I could figure out what it was." Hank said frustrated.

"There is." A young girl said.

The team whipped around to see a young teenage girl with long brown hair and blue eyes standing behind them in leather jacket, t-shirt and jeans.

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" Cap asked.

"My name is X-23, I have an important message you need to hear." She told them. Hawkeye dismissed it and walked over to her.

"Look kid, we've got more important things to deal with than to listen to you." he said placing a hand on her shoulder. X-23 took his arm and flipped him to the ground laying him out on the ground surprising his teammates.

"You know what? The floor's all yours." He groaned while Thor approached her.

"You're the girl I ran into earlier." He said.

"Great you two know each other, that breaks the ice…like my back." quipped Hawkeye. Prompting the pair to look back at him.

"Don't mind me, I'll just hang out down here for a while." He added before shutting up.

"Pray thee, what it is thou doth need?" he asked.

"You guys are going to think I'm crazy for saying this, but I'm from the future." She told them.

After a moment of silence Hawkeye started laughing before X-23 looked back at him.

"Oh wait, your serious." He replied.

"Oookay, I think the air pressure is starting to get to her." Wasp added unsure.

"You think I'm lying?" she warned as two metal claws shot out of her fist catching Wasp and the others off guard.

"Easy Ms. Stand down, none of us are saying you're a liar." Cap said standing between them. The young woman growled and sheathed her claws.

"So then when exactly are you from?" Ant-Man asked.

"About 10 years from now. Something horrible has happened in my future that leads to the Avengers' disbandment, and in its place something more sinister has taken the Avengers' name." she said disturbing the team even more.

In the future Norman sat in his office having finished up his stack of papers and sat with his fingertips splayed together with an evil smirk on his face as his agents walked into his office. On the corner of his desk sat a red and silver Iron Man styled helmet.

"You called sir?" a woman asked.

"I have a job for you my Avengers, take down the remaining superheroes." he ordered.

"As you wish sir." the woman answered.

"It's all I want." he said as the room panned out to reveal a large golden acronym behind him spelling out H.A.M.M.E.R.

_Author's Note: All right so what'd you think of that? Admittedly it was probably a huge mistake to update the day everyone goes back to school and what not. For some reason I cant access Story Traffic on my profile I'm not sure if anyone else is having that problem. I'm not real happy with having to post the chapter this early, but whatever as long as it's out there. Let me know what you guys think of it. _

_Please review, _

_Green Gallant. _


	3. X Men: The Fall

_Author's Note: All right I'm back with another chapter. Hope you guys like this next one. _

**The Avengers' Crusade**

**Chapter 3**

**The Avengers' Crusade Presents: X-Men: The Fall**

Back in the present, the young girl known as X-23 related to the Avengers the full details of this dark and twisted future she hailed from. And needless to say it wasn't well received especially by one Avenger in particular.

"What do you mean this is my fault?" Tony barked at her. The young girl got in his face with a finger inches away from his eye.

"If your stupid company hadn't gobbled up all of SHIELD's defense tech then the invasion would have never taken place and Osborn wouldn't be in charge of the Avengers Initiative!" she shot back and was ready to tear his head off before Ant-Man intervened.

"Whoa, whoa time out!" he said pulling them apart and holding them at arm's length.

"I understand your plight, and you have every reason to be mad at Tony. He's done some pretty questionable things in the past. But arguing about it won't get us anywhere. If we're to save the future we need to formulate a plan." He added.

"Ant-Man's right. And what's important now is that we need to find a way to travel into the future so we can change it. So um, how did you get here?" Jan asked bending over slight to her level. X-23 stuck out her lower lip and looked away before answering.

"It was kind of a one way deal." She said in a low voice.

"Great so now we have to make a time machine." Clint said getting up. X-23 whirled around giving Hawkeye a dirty look.

"Well its true isn't it?" he defended. Surprisingly she didn't do anything to him as Iron Man and Ant-Man pondered the necessities for time travel.

"Can you do it?" Iron Man asked.

"Well, in theory it may be possible. But since we don't know the exact process she used to be able to traverse the time stream into our relative point in history. It would be extremely tricky to figure out and could take years or even decades to master." Ant-Man told him.

"What about Banner? He's smart." Hawkeye suggested. Hulk scoffed in annoyance.

"Banner's an expert in gamma radiation not time travel." He commented gruffly.

"Thank you Mister Green Genes." Hawkeye retorted.

"If there's anyone that can engineer the impossible its Reed Richards." said Hank.

"Mister Fantastic?" Hawkeye said surprised.

"No the Easter Bunny." Hulk replied earning a scowl from his teammate.

"Are you always like this?" he growled getting in his face while the Hulk knelt down to his level.

"Anytime you want to go arrow prick." Hulk replied.

"Really? You guys pick now of all times to start fighting?" said Wasp.

"Stay out of this!" they barked to the embarrassment of their teammates. Leading X-23 to say.

"This is professional…"

"Buddy I can take you on anytime!" Hawkeye said poking Hulk's chest. To which the green goliath was tempted to grab and break his wrist.

"Knock it off." X-23 growled but to no avail. The young girl hissed clinching her eyes shut as they continued to argue.

"_Knock it off!" _she shrieked as they all fell silent.

"Do you have any idea what I've sacrificed to come here? People are dead because you weren't there when we needed you most! You guys are gone! The X-Men are destroyed! There's no one on the planet that'll stand up to Norman Osborn and his goons! And all you do is argue? What's wrong with you guys? How could you be the heroes' kids worship? Your nothing but a disgrace! All of you!" she yelled before storming off.

The Avengers stood around silent as a numb feeling settled into the pits of their stomachs. Wasp went off after X-23 to try and calm her down leaving her male compatriots behind. Hawkeye, Iron Man, Hulk, Captain America, Black Panther and Ant-Man gave each other the same disheartened glance. Hulk grimaced and ran a massive hand through his dark green hair embarrassed by the debacle, while the others shifted uncomfortably.

"She's right you know." Cap told them.

"Yeah…" said Iron Man.

"Sorry man." Hawkeye apologized softly.

"Yeah…me too." said Hulk.

X-23 dug her claws into a wall in anger before sliding down to the floor and burying herself in her thighs and started to cry. Wasp came up to her a short while later but kept her distance as she saw the young woman sob quietly into legs. Janet's face softened as she leaned against an archway and stood silently before approaching her.

"Hey their sweetie, are you okay?" she said softly. X-23 shook her head without raising it. Janet took it as a sign and knelt down besides her taking a motherly approach with the girl.

"She has been through a lot." Black Panther said in the next room.

"And we're out here making tools of ourselves. Tony why don't you go ahead and contact Reed Richards?" Hawkeye suggested.

"Already on it." he answered with two fingers pressed against his helmet.

While this was happening Clint noticed that the Hulk reverted back to Bruce Banner.

"And I'll help out anyway that I can." He said holding onto his pants.

"All right then let's get to work." Tony said, while Captain America nodded in approval at his team's change in demeanor. Down the hallway Wasp tried to connect with X-23 still sitting on the floor.

"So you have a real name sweetie?" she asked.

"It's Laura Kinney." she sniffled looking past her knees.

"Janet Van Dyne." smiled Wasp. Laura looked back at her as she extended a hand to X-23.

"Hi." The teen said shaking her hand.

"That's a pretty name." Janet added.

"I guess so." she shrugged.

"I guess you can tell who my dad is." She added looking at her own two prong claws.

"I can think of a few guys." joked Wasp. A faint hint of a smile graced the corner of 23's lips.

"So you do smile." added Wasp. She looked at the older Wasp from the corner of her eye before her smile vanished.

"I don't have a lot to smile for anymore." She said softly.

"I know. You said something about the X-Men earlier?" Janet asked.

"The mansion was attacked last week…a bunch of students died." She muttered.

Janet's eyes widened in shock and jaw dropped at the revelation. Her expression changed to sadness as she leaned back against the wall.

"I had no idea." She said.

"I was in the battle. It was ugly. A crazed pastor by the name of William Stryker believed Mutants were of the devil and called for genocide on national TV. He was one of those televangelists, really controversial but struck a perfect chord with bigots. Founded his own religious hate group called the Church of Humanity. We fought with his group several times before and managed to beat them…but this time was different." She said as she recalled the events.

"Stryker had somehow discovered that the mansion was actually a safe haven for mutants. And organized a strike against the school with the Friends of Humanity, another anti-mutant hate group. The bombed the school, and initiated an all out battle with the senior X-Men. I was on the frontlines alongside them. They were hell bent on killing as many students as they could. When one young girl was killed, Wolverine went nuts and gutted the man that killed her. Cyclops and the others were horrified. There was no time for apologies it was either kill or be killed. I was charged with getting many of the younger, inexperienced students out. I injured and maimed quite a few of Stryker's men with my claws, but it was necessary. And at that moment I didn't care. Some of the kids were pretty scared though." She said remember their horrified expressions.

X-23 wiped a tear from her eye and continued.

"I managed to clear a path for the kids getting them to the buses that were on standby. It seemed as though we were going to make it. All the kids were already on the bus and leaving the facility…then I saw him. William Stryker had a rocket launcher and fired it at the lead bus that was near the front gate and blew it sky high." She said remembering the explosion.

"I was horrified. I've never seen someone so callous in all my life. They were just kids, most of them my age of younger. He aimed for the next bus and I…I just lost it. Before I even knew it I was infront of him ripping the weapon out of his hands, and giving him the most hellacious beating I could muster. He was a monster. I'd never been so angry in all my life." she said as he slid on his back with Laura on top of him.

"I scarred his face with one of my claws and he ran. Stryker later turned up in his church with the right arm of Nimrod, another one of our enemies attached to his own. He had power, and it was my duty to stop him. I tracked him down to his church where he was planning to renew his attack. He captured another mutant by the name of Icarus, a boy with angel wings, and strung him up by such. He revealed to me that Icarus was the one that betrayed us. I didn't want to believe it because he seemed like a decent guy. Stryker revealed that he tricked Icarus, playing with his faith. Saying that God desired his wings back, and that if he did it would save not only his soul but also the souls of his classmates. He was just an innocent pawn in Stryker's sick game. And said he would use Icarus' wings to clone and graft them onto his soldiers to level the playing field. As I got ready to kill him another mutant stepped forward and blasted Stryker through the chest killing him." she said as a gold skinned mutant finished Stryker off.

The large golden blast ripped through the center of his chest and sent him flying back towards the front of the sanctuary. X-23 looked back towards the doors as Elixir stood there with a stern look on his face and his hand outstretched. Elixir bowed his head and lowered his arm in grief, while Stryker's corpse laid spread eagle just short of the pulpit where he preached.

"We got Icarus down and returned him to the mansion shortly there afterward. And then showed the X-Men Stryker's corpse. The battle was over and the mansion was completely destroyed. I haven't been back since." She finished.

In the future, Scott raced across the countryside on his motorcycle as he made his way towards New York City. In his office, Norman Osborn watched a follow-up news report on last week's Xavier Institute attack. A smile played on the villain turned director's face as cameras surveyed the damage, offering up the latest findings the media and law enforcement have attained.

Across the city at the Avengers' museum, one lone child remained infront of Iron Man's statue with a look of intense concentration. His classmates having long since departed the room, this young boy was left all alone in front of the statue. It was amazing that no one had noticed his absence till now as 15 minutes had already passed, and the boy hadnt moved an inch.

"Nathaniel. Nathaniel Stark." his teacher called out.

The boy finally broke his gaze and looked back at her with a bewildered look.

"We're going." she told him.

"All right." he said giving the armor one last look before meeting up with his teacher. The door closed behind them sheathing the heroes' exhibit in darkness.

A few minutes he was on board the bus and made his way towards the back where a brother/sister duo were seated and took the seat next to them.

"What took you so long Nathan?" the boy asked.

"Oh you know Oli just...nevermind." he said declining to answer.

The boy sitting across from him had brown spikey hair with a white streak in his bangs, his eyes hidden behind a pair of sunglasses.

"Checking out your old man's exhibit again." he said playing with a deck of cards. The boy peered over his shades revealing him to have red and black eyes.

"Don't pay attention to him Nathan." the boy's sister told him who's hair color was inverted and had normal green eyes.

"The Avengers used to stand for something Becca. Not these goons Norman Osborn employs. The worst part is no one knows whose under those masks." Nathan said exasperated. Oli smirked as he flipped out an Ace of Spades card and gave it a dark green aura.

"Maybe its time we get thier attention." he said.

"You know your not supposed to do that!" she hissed pushing down on his hand, forcing him to hide his card.

"What's the point of having powers if we ain't gonna use em?" he asked.

"You know damn well why we cant Oliver." she said keeping her voice down.

The bus suddenly rattled as something raced overhead. The students on board pressed to the left side of the bus and caught sight of a figure in an Iron Man-esk armor flying over the city. A smile came to Nathan's face as he reached into his backpack and pulled out a red and silver metallic briefcase with a translucent disc in the middle infront of his friend.

"No Oli's right. Its time we come out of hiding." he said.

A half hour later he stood before the class giving his post-field trip report on their trip to the museum.

"Tony Stark is remember for more than just being the guy that almost doomed the world. Before the Secret Invasion he was an industrialist, but more importantly than that he was a hero. Unlike most superheroes his was known to the world. He was called the Invincible Iron Man, because of how advanced his suit and weapons were he could take on any villain and was prepared for just about anything." he said to the class.

"Too bad his own ego and greed got the best of him." one of his male classmates commented, earning laughs from the others.

"That's enough Reggie." the teacher scolded.

"At least he was a hero, unlike the new so-called Avengers that defend New York." he shot back.

"Your just mad because your dad's gone." Reggie commented smugly.

"What?" he growled crumpling his report.

"Enough!" the teacher yelled standing up.

"You just earned yourself detention. Nathan I'm sorry but we're going to have to cut this short. Please take your seat." she said before sitting back down herself.

The bell rang a moment later as the rest of the students got up leaving Reggie, Nathan and the teacher the only ones in the room. The instructor looked back at Nathan as he stood gathering his things.

"Nathan I realize that your father was Iron Man and that you held him in a higher regard than most people but..."

"Yeah I know, no one else feels the same way." he muttered lugging his dufflebag onto his shoulder and left without another word.

The teacher watched him with a concerned expression while Reggie scoffed thinking he won.

"That last remark was uncalled for, you now have an hour's detention after school till the end of the week." she told him.

In the hallway Nathan was joined by his friends Oli and Becca.

"Sorry to hear about that." Oli said though it sounded apathetic.

"Whatever let's get out of here." Nathan muttered.

"You know there are still other heroes out there." Becca told him.

"Yeah but none of them are willing to stand up to Osborn." he replied.

"I wouldnt bet on that horse yet Nate." Oli countered.

In another part of the city a certain wall crawler landed on the side of a building eyeing the mayor's office. Inside the city's duelly elected official was busy signing paperwork when the window next to him opened and Spider-Man settled on the ceiling of his office. The official jumped as he looked up and saw the red and blue themed superhero perched above him.

"What in blazes are you doing in my office Spider-Man?" J. Jonah Jameson growled.

"To tell you to withdraw your support of Norman's Avengers." he said.

"Oh threatening me are ya? And why exactly would I do that?" he said standing up.

Spidey turned his body over so he was facing him upright with one hand on the ceiling.

"Look J.J. I may be the absolute last person on the planet you'd trust with anything, but your going to have to hear me out on this." he said.

"Ha! All you've done is cause trouble. Norman Osborn saved the human race by killing the Skrull Queen. What have you done? Besides raise my blood pressure?" Jameson countered.

Spidey narrowed his eyes and dropped onto the desk grabbing Jameson by his collar.

"Listen you! I've saved this city more times than you can count! And I've put my life in danger more times than you know! And I am _telling_you that Osborn is a criminal and a psychopath! He is not to be trusted. Just because he ended the Queen's life doesnt make him a saint. Do you hear me?" he said getting in Jameson's face. But his longtime foe didnt answer.

"Do you hear me?" he repeated. Jonah's eyes narrowed as he was forced to stare back at the Wall Crawler.

"No, you listen to me. As an editor I stand only for the truth, and as mayor I continue to do so. So unless you can prove Norman Osborn is what you say he is, I wont believe a word of it." he said with resolve.

"Fine." Spidey said throwing him back.

The mayor staggered back a step before his chair and steadied his balance while leveling his gaze at the hero.

"You've always twisted the truth regarding me. Why should this time be any different?" he asked.

"That's a lie! Even when I'm proven wrong I've always printed a retraction in my paper and you know that! I may not like you Spider-Man but I mean what I say. The truth always prevails." he said.

"For your sake I hope your right." he said before firing off a line and leaving the office. The Mayor sat down in his chair as several aids rushed in.

"Are you all right?" a young black woman asked.

"Yes I'm fine. Get me the Daily Bugle, I need to speak with Robbie Robertson." he ordered.

"Yes Mayor." the aid said and rushed out.

As the woman left, Jonah turned back towards the window Spider-Man had exited from and saw him websling across the city.

"If Spider-Man says Norman is up to something, then this might be worth looking into." he said to himself.

_Author's Note: All right sorry about the length of this chapter. It turned out be alot longer than I originally intended. I was going to stop at just the part involving what happened to the X-Men in the future but for some reason it didnt feel complete. I feel like I need to explain a few things as to the X-Men's defeat and dissolution. A large part of this is based on a storyline from a couple years ago in the comics. William Stryker is a long time foe of the X-Men, you probably know him better as the bad guy from X2: X-Men United as Col. William Stryker a rouge goverment offical that tries to exterminate mutantkind. In the comics Rev. Stryker in a renegade televangalist who thinks he's on a mission from God to destroy mutants. What happens to the X-Men in this chapter is a reflection of a recent storyline after the 'Decimation' arc where 90% of the mutant population is depowered. In the story Stryker sees this as a sign from God, and reorganizes his followers known as the Purifiers to attack the Mansion who succeed in killing a vast number of depowered students that were leaving the grounds. In the end Stryker is simularly struck down by the X-Men Elixir. I just thought I'd make that clear so it didnt seem like I held any ill regard. This is just me adapting a storyline from the comics explaining why the X-Men are no more in this future. In hind sight, I probably should have put more thought and consideration into this chapter. I apologise if anyone was offended. Oh and by the way, the kids that show up at the end of this chapter are not OCs. _

_Let me know what you think. _

_Please review. _


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